The Russian Paralympic Committee and its athletes denied the chance to compete at the Winter Games have departed Beijing just moments before the opening ceremony is due to get underway.
The International Paralympic Committee sparked huge criticism on Wednesday after initially allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete at the Games - but as neutrals.
However, after mounting pressure across the globe amid the war in Ukraine, the IPC gave in and performed a major U-turn on Thursday, announcing that athletes from the two countries were indeed banned from competing.
